Pena, Longoria bust slump in Game 5

Rays thunder makes first Series contributions with bat

In the fourth inning of Game 5 of the World Series, which was suspended due to rain on Monday night and is set to resume on Wednesday, both Carlos Pena and Evan Longoria collected their first hits of the Series.

"We're going to come out of it, or we're not going to come out of it," Longoria told raysbaseball.com before Game 5. "Whether or not we do or we don't, we have to keep swinging the bat. If we do and this thing turns around for us, it'll be a great feeling. We'll know that we accomplished something. But at the same time, if it doesn't turn, we've got to go down knowing we did everything we could."

Romero masterful in October: J.C. Romero has tossed six innings without allowing a run so far in the postseason. Phillies manager Charlie Manuel says that's not a surprise to him at all.

"He's had a very big season," Manuel told the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. "He's tough. He's deadly on lefthanders. He's good on righties, but the same time, I like to try to match him up, especially late in the game."

Catcher Carlos Ruiz says Romero is a valuable guy to have around. "He also brings a lot of energy to the team," Ruiz said. "When he comes to the mound, he shows everybody he's there on the mound, you know."

Hamels could become first to go 5-0: When the Phillies come to bat on Wednesday night to continue Game 5 of the World Series, it's nearly certain that Manuel will pinch-hit for Cole Hamels, who is due up in the bottom of the sixth.

For Hamels, who is 4-0 this postseason, there is still a chance -- if the Phillies take and hold onto a lead -- that he could become the first starter to go 5-0 in the postseason. And while he hopes to keep pitching, he understands that it's out of his control.

"It's not the way you want to finish your last start of the year," Hamels told MLB.com, "but you just have to let Mother Nature win and trust your bullpen."

Miller not putting up a stink at new digs: Tampa Bay players, who had checked out of their Philadelphia hotel, finally got a chance to take a breather on Tuesday morning after they checked into the historic Hotel du Pont in downtown Wilmington, Del.

Trever Miller was found relaxing downstairs, enjoying the scent wafting in the lobby of the luxury hotel.

"What is that?" Miller asked in a story in the Tampa Tribune. "Pumpkin-pie scent," a du Pont associate said. "It's filtered in."

"Nice," Miller said.

Kazmir battled poor conditions: Scott Kazmir was more concerned with getting the Philadelphia hitters out than remaining safe on the field during a rainy and windy Game 5 of the World Series.

Only after leaving the game did he realize how bad the field was looking due to the rain.

"The weather just really wasn't looking good," Kazmir told raysbaseball.com. "You couldn't get good footing -- just didn't get that feel for the ball, with the cold and the wind and everything like that. It's just tough. But it was like that for both teams. It's just something you have deal with as a baseball player.

"Seeing B.J. [Upton] out there -- and there were just puddles right next to him -- someone could have really gotten hurt."

Victorino ponders city as home of the champs: Shane Victorino knows Philadelphia will erupt in celebration if the Phillies can finish off the Rays.

"I can't imagine what it's going to be like in this city, if we can do it," he wrote in MLBlogs.com. "Driving home on Broad Street after Saturday's win, I could see the excitement already, and we had just won one game. The closer we get, the more exciting it gets."

Upton focused on not slipping: With the Rays' season on the line, B.J. Upton splashed and dashed to second base to give his club new life in the top of the sixth inning in Game 5.

With the Rays down 2-1, Upton hit a two-out single to reach first. Despite standing in mud, he was able to steal second base to get into scoring position, sliding quickly through a puddle in the process.

"I expected it to be soft, but it still kind of tore up my knee a little bit," Upton told raysbaseball.com.

Carlos Pena then came through with a big hit, his second of the night. Pena singled to left field and Upton raced around third and slid into home plate.

"My main thing was giving myself a chance to score and staying on my feet. [I] didn't want to slip there," Upton said. "Like I said, he had to make a perfect throw right there. The ball was wet. I just wanted to stay on my feet."

Ruiz takes Manuel's words to heart: Carlos Ruiz batted .219 this year, but he carried a .417 World Series average into Game 5 -- including a game-winning chopper in Game 3. He says that, no matter his numbers, he plays the game how manager Charlie Manuel expects.

"I think my first time when I got called up with Charlie [Manuel], he told me that he would like to see the catchers very aggressive with a lot of energy on the field," Ruiz told the Philadelphia Daily News. "So that's what I try to do every time."

Aybar's trip to World Series a 'dream': Willy Aybar has played an important role in helping Tampa Bay reach the World Series.

"This is a dream," Aybar, 25, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "I'm very, very happy to be doing this, and I'm just working as hard as I can."

"He stepped up big time when people got hurt," said Edwin Jackson, also a former teammate of Aybar's with the Los Angeles Dodgers. "He definitely was a key player for us this year, and had a big part in where we are today. He's a good dude. I had the pleasure of playing with him in L.A., too. He's always been quiet, always comes to play and does his job."

Durbin ready if needed: Chad Durbin was prepared to take the ball in the seventh inning -- his usual spot -- in the continuation of the suspended Game 5 on Wednesday night.

Meanwhile, he had to say goodbye to some family members who'd been in town over the weekend to watch Games 3, 4 and 5.

"They got to be part of the hoopla," he said. "They saw two wins. So the little bit of disappointment [of not potentially seeing a clincher] was put into perspective pretty quickly."

Price, bullpen ready to go: When Game 5 of the World Series resumes on Wednesday night, the Tampa Bay Rays will have a bullpen that's ready and waiting for its turn to shine, too.

"I want the ball," David Price told the Tampa Tribune. "Our entire bullpen wants the ball right now. There's a chance to go out there and get it back to Tropicana, back to Tampa. That's something we want to do, and our whole bullpen's hungry for the ball right now."